Getting It Done
How Obama and Congress Finally Broke the Stalemate to Make Way for Health Care Reform
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1.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Senator Tom Daschle's narrative of what went on behind the scenes in the making of the new health care legislation delivers a powerful lesson in the workings of American politics.
The evolution of health care reform was drawn-out, frustrating, and complicated, but Senator Tom Daschle is the ideal person to recount the process. His account will guide you through the entire story, from the earliest presidential campaign debates -- and his firsthand experiences in the Obama team -- through the battles on Capitol Hill to solve our most serious health care problems. Not simply a book about policy, Daschle's narrative describes in vivid detail how fragile the support in Congress was at every step of the way, as well as the frantic efforts to design a rescue strategy before time ran out.
Combining his insights as a health care expert and his political expertise, this is the inside story about how the new legislation came together: from the persistence of President Obama to the subsequent efforts--and counter efforts--within the Senate and the House. In Daschle's hands, this becomes a dramatic personal story and a remarkable lesson in politics at the highest level.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Former Senator Daschle, a key player in health care reform during his tenure, and leading journalist Nather (The New Health Care System) provide an insider's account of the negotiations that resulted in the passage of health care reform legislation. Unfortunately, Daschle is so careful to be fair and balanced, giving all involved, particularly those who oppose his views, so much credence, that his first-hand explanations are tedious and redundant rather than insightful and passionate. The ill-fated Public Option, for instance, is addressed in only five pages, during which Daschle both touts and dismisses its importance; its power, he says, was that it "combined elements of costs, quality, and access the three broad problems that health care had to solve" and yet "it's easy to forget how few people ever would have dealt with it." Still, readers looking for an inside account of the process of drafting and passing health care reform will find much of interest here, but those seeking to understand the legislation itself should take note: Daschle only briefly covers provisions of the law itself. Readers interested in an accessible overview of the coming changes should read Nather's excellent recent effort.
